Drive for more money ‘won’t increase taxes’
What you need to know:
- Last week, President Kenyatta said in Kericho Town that the Government had no “extra” money to allocate to counties and wondered why governors were asking for more cash, yet they could not explain how they had used what had been allocated to them last year.
- The Bomet governor said Kenyans needed to see more development programmes being rolled out in counties.
- Kericho Governor Paul Chepkwony was proverbial in his explanation.
Governors Sunday said that taxes will not go up if voters back the referendum.
Council of Governors Chairman Isaac Ruto dismissed the claim by President Uhuru Kenyatta as untrue and urged Kenyans to ignore it.
“Governors have never called for the increment of taxes... we are just demanding to be given what belongs to us,” Mr Ruto said.
He was speaking in Seretet Ward, Belgut Constituency in Kericho County on Saturday during a fundraiser.
Last week, President Kenyatta said in Kericho Town that the Government had no “extra” money to allocate to counties and wondered why governors were asking for more cash, yet they could not explain how they had used what had been allocated to them last year.
“If someone knows a tree which we can go and harvest money to give governors, they should show me where that tree is. We get all the money from taxes and we do not want to increase taxes just for governors to get more money,” he had said.
STATE HOUSE TALKS
The Bomet governor said Kenyans needed to see more development programmes being rolled out in counties.
He said that governors had turned down a request by President Kenyatta to drop the referendum call because State House did not offer an alternative that could lead to an increase in funds devolved to regions.
Kericho Governor Paul Chepkwony was proverbial in his explanation.
“Governors are like newly-wed wives, who have been married in homes without utensils, yet they are expected to cook for their husbands,” he said.
He said that counties needed cash for projects.
